Colorful car rides

Ready to hop into your car and take off to enjoy autumn scenery this weekend, but not quite sure where to go?

Why not head for an area that quickly reassures you most of Pennsylvania remains a rural, beautiful and tree-covered state?

Much of the Keystone State still is blissfully free from the ugliness of overdevelopment -- at least so far.

In autumn its ancient slopes, covered with a brilliant, multi-colored shag, practically call out to be explored.

FOR THE RECORD - (Published Saturday, October 19, 2002) If heading south on Route 100 to reach the Amish Country in Lancaster County, turn west on Route 23, not east. The incorrect direction was in the "Colorful Car Rides" article in Friday's A.M. Magazine.

Keep in mind that, unless you plan to camp, overnight accommodations are limited in sparsely populated sections of the state, especially when you get away from the turnpike and the interstates.

What follows is a variety of autumn driving tours and destinations in Pennsylvania, mostly in the eastern and central parts of the state.

North-central drives

If you really want to get away from it all, you won't be disappointed if you head for north-central Pennsylvania to soak up autumn scenery.

One excellent drive is Route 120 from Lock Haven up to Emporium, a 75-mile-long route through Clinton and Cameron counties with a misleading name: Bucktail State Park. It isn't a park, and the road lacks what any state park with exceptional scenery should have: overlooks.

Still, it's a beautiful drive. And you may spot some elk along the way, part of Pennsylvania's expanding wild elk herd. The highway winds through mountainous wilderness as it follows the west branch of the Susquehanna River then Sinnemahoning Creek. The boyhood home of early cowboy film star Tom Mix, open sporadically, is less than five miles west of Driftwood. (Call 814-546-2044 for hours.)

If you're feeling adventurous and don't want to go back the same way, follow Route 144 south from Renovo down to Snowshoe at Interstate 80. Not a single town dots the map on that wilderness road.

A similar drive is up sparsely populated and mostly unspoiled Pine Creek Valley.

Go north on Route 44 just west of Jersey Shore in Lycoming County, then follow Route 414 up to Cedar Run. If you want to do a loop, stay on 414 to Blackwell, Morris and Liberty, then head south toward Williamsport on Route 15.

You can break up that trip by making reservations to stay at Cedar Run Inn, which serves gourmet meals in tiny Cedar Run along Pine Creek (570-353-6241).

Driving Routes 44 and 414 between mountains that form Pine Creek Valley is what it might be like if a highway ran along the bottom of Pine Creek Gorge -- popularly known as the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon -- farther north in Tioga County.

Pine Creek Gorge

Pine Creek Gorge is one of Pennsylvania's most popular autumn destinations. A don't-miss attraction for any resident, the gorge is 47 miles long and up to 1,450 feet deep.

Visitors can watch the sun rise from Colton Point State Park on the west rim of the gorge and watch it set from Leonard Harrison on the east rim. The parks are directly opposite each other at a spot where the gorge is more than 830 feet deep.

The gorge is so popular that area accommodations often are booked throughout October, even on weekdays.

Route 6

Pine Creek Gorge begins just south of Route 6 at Ansonia, Tioga County. Crossing 400 miles of northern Pennsylvania, Route 6 is a very popular autumn drive. While only a few areas might be described as breathtaking, plenty of gorgeous scenery surrounds the mostly two-lane highway, especially from west of

Scranton through Wyoming, Bradford, Tioga, Potter and McKean counties. The scenery becomes less mountainous, and less interesting, west of Allegheny National Forest.

Ricketts Glen

If you want a scenic drive with a hiking destination, take Route 487 north of Interstate 80 to Ricketts Glen State Park in the northwest corner of Luzerne County.

The park's key attractions are 22 waterfalls, ranging in height from 10 to 94 feet, and 500-year-old trees. The falls can be seen along the rugged Y-shaped Falls Trails.

Ricketts Glen is so special that it was approved by the federal government to become a national park in the 1930s, but World War II ended those plans.

Parks with views

Several other state parks offer spectacular overlooks, including Big Pocono in Monroe County, World's End in Sullivan County and Hyner View in Clinton County.

You can watch migrating raptors while sitting on a ridge top at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in northern Berks County. Or hike up the New Jersey or Pennsylvania side of Delaware Water Gap near Stroudsburg.

North along the Delaware

Another scenic drive is Route 209, which follows the Delaware River north from Marshalls Creek to Milford. Because most of it passes through Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, this road is free of commercial clutter. And some of the scenery is terrific, including cliffs that rise up from the road.

Break up the trip by visiting Bushkill Falls, a privately owned attraction, or Dingmans Falls, which is part of the park and costs nothing to see. (A park visitor center is at Bushkill.) Your destination can be Grey Towers, Gov. Gifford Pinchot's country mansion in Milford.